The Commission has expressed
exasperation with how counties are implementing devolution in as much as he
proposed Inter-governmental mechanisms to help in addressing the bottlenecks.

“It is important to engage the public in a bid
to make sure they have an understanding of what their government is
undertaking. If the constitution and the enabling legislations are followed as
expected there is no reason as to why devolution should not succeed,”notes Nyachae
while in Busia County in a meeting with the area Governor Sospeter Ojaamong and
his Deputy Kizito Wangalwa.

All Governors have showed their
commitment in ensuring that devolution exercise succeeds however, it seems they
are yet to understand the full meaning of that.

Alexander Chagema a Kakamega
County resident says,

“Realization of devolution as envisaged will come at a
heavy cost which translates into heavier taxation at a time when the purchasing
power of the ordinary citizen has been seriously eroded by a non performing
economy.”

He adds that,

“Governors are
determined to raise revenue within their respective counties through
introduction of numerous, often punitive taxes, a move that has been met with
hostile resistance, even serious riots in some counties. It is preposterous to
expect citizens to pay the numerous hefty taxes being imposed at a time when
the cost of living, medical care and education are a nightmare most people are
hoping to wake up from.”

Evans Masyongo laments that the
purpose and intent of devolution was noble. The implementation is a far cry
from what was envisioned.

“I am equally perturbed by the obsession by counties
to tax. I am a one disappointed Kakamega.”

Ambrose Makokha from Cherangany
in Trans Nzoia County says being taxed is not bad but there is need for proper
mechanisms that will ensure service delivery.

To promote social and economic
development and the provision of proximate, easily accessible services
throughout Kenya; to give powers of self-governance to the people and enhance
the participation of the people in the exercise of the powers of the State and
in making decisions affecting them; to recognize the right of communities to
manage their own affairs and to further their development amongst others.

However, most counties have
breached articles 201 and 209 of the Constitution with their new proposed tax
measures.

Chagema observes that he has
seen families bury their dead kin in off cuts because a coffin that cost Ksh
2000 is a luxury they can only dream of. How then do they raise Sh 5000 to get
a burial permit? If residents have to pay Sh20 for every chicken reared, Sh300
for every pig and 500 for every head of cattle one has, is it worthy starting
projects involving the same considering the project costs?

One, most county budgets do not
contain any detailed explanation of the choices made in the budget, or the
nature and relevance of different programmes. Thus, recommends that during the
budget formulation, they should include a narrative description of programmes
to accompany any tables. In addition to information that may be made available
through a budget statement or speech, there is a need for a publicly available
narrative that explains the assumptions used in the budget (assumptions about
revenues and costs, etc.) as well as the reasons for spending more in some
areas than others.

Two, the policy brief notes
many counties have budget lines that are unclear for instance, Busia: “Trees
for Jobs” and “County youth friendly medical centres” has not clarified what
they are and how money will be spent while Uasin Gishu “County Government Association Membership
fee” and “Inter-County forum Contribution”
not clarifying how different they are from each other.

They recommend that Good
budgets should either have budget lines that are easily understandable to
anyone, or they should contain additional notes that explain budget lines that
are not self-evident. It is generally a matter of common sense to determine
what is easily understandable and what is not in a budget, but county
governments should also be able to determine this from public engagements
during the budget process.

In a rejoinder, Fengler says,

“In fact, devolution requires sustained central coordination to be effective.
Central systems serve two main purposes:
to make sure weaker counties’ needs are being addressed through capacity
building and that the spending and performance of county governments can be
compared on a common basis thanks to accountability systems.”

On the other hand, the CIC Chair says the County Governments should not focus just focus on revenue
collection but emphasis on how it is spent in an accountable manner that does
not burden the tax payer.

He emphasizes the need to
enlighten residents on the importance of paying tax, encourage public
consultation when drafting the Finance Bill and also seek their views during
its formulation.

On the centrally, for instance
Busia County, there is an allocation for public participation, but it is only
in the County Assembly budget. How will Counties stand out to be viable units
that promote social and economic development and the provision of proximate,
easily accessible services throughout Kenya and ensuring equitable sharing of
national and local resources throughout Kenya?

The Policy Brief recommends the
need for county governments to clarify how they plan to undertake public
consultations, explain this clearly, establish structures, and set aside
sufficient funds for this that can be easily found in the budget as required by
the Public Finance Management Act.

Sunday, 19 January 2014

Many knew him because he creatively
told the world about the African story, a story that many are afraid to speak
about, the way Africa is on an upward journey.

He made me be proud of
the stories as broadcast on BBC Focus on Africa.

On the eve of ushering in
2014, he wanted all to be inspired

Believe In Yourself In
2014“A person who doubts
himself is like a man who would enlist in the ranks of his enemies and bear
arms against himself. He makes his failure certain by himself being the first
person to be convinced of it.”- Alexandre DumasHappy 2014 my friends! I
wish you good health and success! Komla

Others say:

Our nation has lost one of its finest ambassadors. @BBCkomladumor was a broadcaster of exceptional quality and Ghana's gift to the world.
— John Dramani Mahama (@JDMahama) January 18, 2014

@BBCkomladumor a fallen of an African voice. Who will continue telling the story in the midst of racial dominance in world affairs?RIP, bro.
— Gideon Mensah Anapey (@GideonAnapey) January 19, 2014

Komla
had real presence. Physically, you couldn't miss him. If you were blind, you
would hear his booming voice. If you were deaf, his handshake left you in no
doubt. He riffed on everything. What he loved on his last work trip, needing to
go to Ghana to relax, the latest quips from his three beloved children. How is
Chiko, he'd ask, and the little one. Bros, he would say. His smile. His smile.
A warm warm guy. - Nkem

“Journalism is not just
the meaning of the word but a lot more than that. It is a definition of who you
are, what you stand for, whom you stand for, why you stand for it/them, how you
stand for them/it, where and when you stand for it/them.”

Komla says one need to
look at self to look for inspiration and go for it.

On life lessons he says:

Before you go global you
need to start local. Be small and grow big and achieve great things.

What standards do you set
for yourself? There is one standard and that is a global standard. If you set the
bar low for yourself you will achieve things that are low and if you set the
bar high, you will achieve great things. Therefore, set a standard that you want
to achieve, set a high standard and cross that bar.

You need to have a
target, a plan and a clear and defined time frame to achieve your goals.

Being local and thinking
global means starting your goals from where you are based but on a broader
scale.

For the future, he said,
whatever happens I will be prepared for it and certainly I hope you are there
to share the journey.

Consistency: there are
days in which people may not be there to notice what you are doing but you must
be consistent and operate 100 per cent in whatever opportunity you have been
given when it comes to achieving your dream.